- 64GB DDR5 RAM kits that not long ago cost $200 now cost over $1000
- Rising RAM prices have turned routine PC upgrades into luxury purchases
- AI demand is partly to blame for the current RAM crisis, but it’s not the only reason
It’s not a good time to be a PC builder right now. Buying RAM used to be something that was done without much consideration, now you have to think not only about how much memory you need, but how much you can actually be able to pay.
If you are looking for some DDR5 RAM, you will need a lot of money like PCPartPicker shows 64GB DDR5 kits breaking the $1,000 mark.
Not long ago, that same capability would have been treated as a sensible upgrade rather than a luxury purchase. For context, if you had gone shopping in August 2025, you would be expected to pay less than $250 for 64GB of DDR5.
still on the rise
Even a month ago, the averages were closer to the $600 to $700 range, which was already uncomfortable but nowhere near four figures.
Within weeks, prices surpassed $800, continued to rise, and surpassed $1,000, turning what used to be incremental increases into a near-vertical rise.
That pace is warping the appearance of the data itself. in some PCPartPicker On the price tracking charts, long stretches of flat and stable RAM prices are visually compressing to make room for the sharp rise on the right edge.
Years of quiet RAM history are compressed into a thin band so the latest peak can even fit on the screen.
While it’s easy to point the finger at AI’s insatiable thirst for memory for the current crisis, it’s not the only reason.
DRAM production has not been able to meet demand. Older memory types are being phased out, newer ones are targeted at higher margin customers, and consumer RAM is exposed when supply dwindles.
RAM is now so expensive that memory cards are being stolen from display PCs, warehouses, returned systems and even offices, something that would have sounded absurd when 64GB costs a fraction of current prices.
For builders and buyers, the message is hard to ignore. Although some forms of memory are rising more slowly than others, it will be a while before things stabilize and even longer before prices come close to feeling “normal” again.
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